In Egypt, Anti-Semitism Back in Fashion

With the Arab Spring having come and gone, one lasting gift it gave to Egypt was Muslim Brotherhood member new President Mohamed Morsi. In return, Morsi has given the people more Islamists in places of power, like PM Hisham Qandil.

But more than anything, the Arab Spring seems to have revived a hatred for Jews that’s hard to put into words. It’s not just a dislike or disdain, but an all-encompassing hatred that affects every part of Egyptian society from the top down.

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As Atlantic correspondent Jeffrey Goldberg has put it, the anti-Semitism in Egypt is at such a fever pitch that international travelers to that country would be better off insulting an Egyptian’s “mother or sister” than admitting they are Jewish or friendly toward Jewish persons. According to Goldberg, the anti-Semitism he witnessed in Egypt exceeds even that which he has seen in Iran, where they can’t wait to wipe Israel off the map.

This hatred for the Jewish state and the Jewish people in particular should give Western supporters of the Arab Spring pause. For it seems the revolution that was supposed to usher in democracy has actually only ushered in an Islamist-ruled state when our ally, Israel, is hated above all others.